__________________we are the music makers and we are the dreamers of dreams. wandering by lone sea breakers and sitting by desolate streams. world losers and world forsakers, on whom the pale moon gleams. yet we are the movers and shakers of the world for ever it seems

Anna Piaggi passed away last night. And I believe I’m voicing the feelings of everybody in the fashion industry in stating that, with her, we are grieving the loss of a key symbolic figure.

She was not only a great international journalist and fashion editor but also, and foremost, an icon, a muse and an inspiration for everybody. Anna’s work was not limited to the creation and running of major fashion publications such as Arianna or Vanity; neither did she simply coin features which, like her D.P.s for Vogue Italia, shaped the new direction of the magazine from 1988 up to now successfully asserting her unique way of capturing changes and evolutions in fashion.

Thanks to her special ability to sum up and her hyper-sophisticated, and unquestionably innovative, way of creating collages bringing together images and text, cropping and close-ups, Anna has, above all and essentially, contributed to turn fashion into a language, an epoch-making volcanic means of expression and communication, a fascinating, unique and eccentric universe which she has served and inhabited faithfully and loyally until her last day.

Her abiding passion for fashion designers, stylists, hair stylists, vintage creations and one-off prototypes as well as for couturiers and milliners provided the content of her magnificent wardrobe and her unique and extravagant looks that will continue to vouch for her discoveries, the elective affinities, the enthusiasm and the commitment.

The news of her death leaves us dismayed and at a loss for words; gone is Anna Piaggi whom we will no longer see collaborating with art directors, graphic designers, photographers and illustrators. She will be sorely missed at the front rows. Gone are her greetings, her always smart and insightful opinions and comments. Anna Piaggi who will no longer be seen beaming posing next to young, or very young, newcomers. She will be terribly missed by the many and many devotees who, year after year, generation after generation, never ceased to find ways to get in touch with her, approach her and exchange a few words. A legend.

vogue.it

__________________we are the music makers and we are the dreamers of dreams. wandering by lone sea breakers and sitting by desolate streams. world losers and world forsakers, on whom the pale moon gleams. yet we are the movers and shakers of the world for ever it seems

That's so sad .. one of the last legendary eccentric souls of fashion. I grew up associating her presence with the entire fashion industry, I remember seeing her often in Tim Blank's Fashion File and being so intrigued by her style and how she carried it with belief and honesty.. in a way I feel like the expression of her personality with such freedom was one of the first things that attracted me so much about fashion- too bad she was really one of the very last ones, with Blow's departure, McQueen, Galliano's fall, Paco Rabanne's retirement and now Piaggi leaving, it feels as if there are more restrictions now and the emphasis on correctness has taken over. She definitely represented a generation where fashion was such a tiny bubble that there was no pressure to fully comply with social standards, I'm not sure it was particularly better, but certainly more liberating and inviting to just be.

This is so incredibly sad. Anna was one of those rare people you just knew was 100% herself. She dressed in a way that was rather refreshing to see. I remember the first time I saw a picture of her I was aghast at the way she was dressed because I wasn't used to seeing older women dress in creative ways. But I soon came to appreciate Anna's style and the fact that she continued to keep up with the fashion set even as she aged (and was probably the most original of them all). If Anna has taught us anything it is to always remember that fashion is a wonderful form of expression. She really was iconic, always that person you looked forward to seeing at fashion shows. Also, I'd like to add that my thoughts are with her friends/family at this time.

__________________http://miss-rumphius.tumblr.com/ "It is ever so much easier to be good if your clothes are fashionable." Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery

Well, if there's such a thing as fashion heaven, it has just become an infinitely more interesting and colourful place. Thankfully Anna left her wonder-full and eccentric mark on an industry that can sometimes be creatively stifling and controlling. My hope is that more renegades will be inspired by this woman's love of fashion combined with play. May she not rest in peace but rather frolic in fabric forever and ever. Thanks for the memories Anna!!

__________________Fashion: Don’t you recognize me? Death: You should know that I don’t see very well and I can’t wear glasses. Fashion: I’m Fashion, your sister. Death: My sister? Fashion: Yes. You and I together keep undoing and changing things down here on earth although you go about it in one way and I another. Giacomo Leopardi, “Dialogue Between Fashion and Death.”abridged

paper magazine has this wonderful interview posted up from 1998 she did with mickey boardman as a tribute-

Quote:

Anna Piaggi, who died yesterday at the age of 81, once told me that on a trip to London she visited 87 boutiques in one weekend. That's a commitment to fashion.

The Italian fashion editor and style icon was adored by fashion fans worldwide for her always-eye-popping personal style. Although she dressed wildly there was an analytical approach to her sartorial choices. When I interviewed her in 1998 (which is re-printed in full below), she told me "Once in awhile I try on what I have and I see.... It's like the word 'algebra.' It goes really by reduction and deduction. It's a little bit mathematical and scientific." At the time she was obsessed with clinical work clothes. That summer she had been wearing pharmacy jackets -- one from Margiela and one that the Chanel dressing room attendants wore. She told me she longed to come to the United States to see all the amazing uniforms workers in this country wore. She was particularly interested in the aprons at McDonalds.

Piaggi got her start as an editor in the 1960s at Ariadne and later became a contributing editor to Italian Vogue. She was the subject of an exhibit in 2006 at the Victoria & Albert museum in London which claimed her collection included 2865 dresses and 265 pairs of shoes. Three of her greatest partners-in-crime were the designer Karl Lagerfeld, milliner Stephen Jones and shoe designer Manolo Blahnik. Piaggi told me, "I think that the head and the feet can make an extraordinary look." When I asked her if she wore her signature flamboyant costumes to the office she responded, "Also for the supermarket. My life is quite normal. But I enjoy dressing all the time." And fashion addicts around the world enjoyed her dressing as well. The world will be a lot less fabulous without her.

Mickey Boardman: Have you always dressed the way you do now?

Anna Piaggi: Dressing has always given me great pleasure. It all started during my very frequent trips to London. I developed a great friendship with a fantastic person, Vern Lambert, who had stores in the Kensington Market, which was a legendary place. Unfortunately, he is no longer living. He was the one who introduced me to the great pleasure of inventing and putting things together. This was in the mid-60's. At the same time, I met Karl Lagerfeld, who was in Paris doing Chloe. He was doing beautiful prints and had very sophisticated and avant-garde taste. I worked for magazines and I was crazy about shopping and seeing boutiques for the magazine. I remember in London during one weekend I saw 87 boutiques! [Laughs.]

MB: Are there any designers now who inspire your personal style?

AP: I keep very open to the young ones. I've been looking at the fashion schools a lot: St. Martin's or Middlesex Polytechnic in London, Studio Bercot in Paris. I've also been looking, through the years, to the Belgian fashion school. The Japanese also seem to always be right.

MB: Do you like deconstruction?

AP: I like it as long as it's done with skill--as long as it's original and it comes with real inspiration and with the habit of draping things, like Comme des Garçons. Rei Kawakubo's always right in a way because she has been turning dresses inside-out and front-to-back so much that it has become incredibly professional and convincing.

MB: Have you ever felt underdressed? Do you have a casual way of dressing?

AP: This summer, in Milano, I've been dressing in work clothes--you know, the tunic one wears in the pharmacy. Very clinical. I have a lab coat from Martin Margiela and one from Chanel that the dressing-room attendants wear. This I would call simple, but there is a meaning. I don't think dressing up always has to be overdressing. There is also a way to dress with a certain minimalistic humor. I like to dress very concisely. It doesn't always have to be masses of feathers and things. But I think it is also good to risk overdressing if there is an idea. It's good to have two extremes.

MB: Is there anything that inspires you about American style?

AP: I dream about going around in America; it must be incredible. I haven't been there for many years, but I'm sure there are so many inspirations. Mentally, I feel like an immigrant in the 19th century who still thinks of America as a very adventurous place. I think it's possible to find fantastic things, like the McDonald's apron. And also movie costumes. It must be extraordinary how many different uniforms are available.

MB: There are a lot of designers who think less is more. How do you feel about this school of thinking?

AP: I think "less is more," as it is done by a few designers in Milano, is extremely modern. I must say that. Prada, Miu Miu and Jil Sander are visually contemporary. I think it is a very good contrast between that and haute-couture richness. I like extremes.

MB: You're famous for your hats. Are there any other accessories you feel naked without?

AP: There are wonderful hat designers like Stephen Jones and Philip Treacy. A hat is a wonderful accessory. I wear these really tiny ones by Stephen Jones. You have a little hat and Manolo Blahnik shoes, of course. I think that the head and the feet, they can make an extraordinary look.

MB: Do you know exactly what you're going to wear in advance?

AP: Once in a while I try on what I have and I see...it is like the word "algebra." It goes really by reduction and deduction. It's a little bit mathematical and scientific. Normally I go very much by intuition. I've been dressing for so many years and I know myself.

MB: Do you dress for work like you dress for the fashion shows?

AP: Also for the supermarket. My life is quite normal. But I enjoy dressing all the time. ★

it's so sad really because it's not just the death of piaggi but i feel like,this in addition to losing issy blow and hilary alexander retiring,it really emphasises the fact that we're losing all our great wonderful eccentrics. with all the robotic alt/roitfield/dello russo clones having become so rampant these days,the true non-conformist characters has become so rare. the only people that even compare now is diane pernet and lynne yaeger and that's not something any of us could have ever said a decade ago. what's happened to fashion? what's happened to the experimenting? it's become so staid and not that exciting on the people-watching front.